


Luckily I can read your mind

by MrMistyEyed



Category: Bandom, Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mental Institution, Attempted Murder, Josh is Sad, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, One True Pairing, Poor Josh, Self-Harm, Sorry Not Sorry, Suicide Attempt, Tragic Romance, blurryface is really bad, stay safe frens
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-13
Updated: 2016-09-13
Packaged: 2018-08-14 22:23:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8031229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrMistyEyed/pseuds/MrMistyEyed
Summary: Tyler has problems. Lots of problems.





	Luckily I can read your mind

**Author's Note:**

> I re-did this story. Let me know if I should finish it.:)

"Josh! Josh, oh my god!" Tyler's scream echoed through the kitchen, and only grew more shrill with each sentence after. "Josh!  _ Josh!"  _ He continued, shrinking down against the wall, a shaking, bloody mess. Only moments later, Josh burst in with blind panic. He was about to ask what happened, but he immediately could tell. He's been in this situation too many times. He knew the drill. Comfort Tyler, wrap up his arms, take the blade from him, convince him he wasn't angry and that he was just scared, repeat. It was a horrible step-by-step process, but it was what had to be done. After seemingly endless tears and apologies, Tyler was content, albeit sniffling with heavily bandaged arms around Josh's waist.

This was just another day in the life of Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun.

-

Josh laid in bed, sitting up at every little sound that was made. He had learned to sleep with the lights on, and gave up his favorite way to fall asleep, which was listening to the radio. He needed to stay alert, and ready at any moment to cradle his poor, sick-minded friend that often had bad thoughts at night. Especially on Sundays. He heard every stir and every whisper that came from the room beside his. Josh was familiar to Blurryface, the entity that shadowed over Tyler's thoughts and actions. Some days, Blurry would take over completely, but Josh could never be fooled. He knew who was who. Blurryface was the fictional dark hands that wrapped around Tyler's throat when he tried to speak, the stutter he possessed when nervous, the suicidal urges, the demon that spoke to him with a hiss. He was so real to Tyler, that it warped how exactly he perceived reality. Since it all went on in his mind, it was the  _ realest  _ thing he could imagine. Just as Josh felt himself start slipping away into unconsciousness, he heard a loud crash, then little tinklings of glass skipping across the floor. Followed by all of this was a pained yelp. He tore out of bed to investigate, trotting his way to the bathroom, which was the first place he thought of looking. He grabbed the doorknob, but it resisted his force. It was locked. He immediately pounded on the door. "Tyler!" He called, afraid. "Open the door, come on!"

In order to get passed Josh's radar, he must have snuck carefully to the restroom, guided by Blurryface urging him forward. After several more loud raps on the door, a very shameful Tyler with his head low opened the door slowly. His knuckles were bloodied, as were the shards of mirror on the floor. Red contrasted with the light tiles and pale skin. Josh immediately pulled him out of the bathroom by his arms and inspected his hands. There didn't seem to be any other marks on him.

"I'm sorry, Josh..." He hummed with a sniffle. "I wasn't trying to do anything bad, I promise. I just...I  _ saw  _ him. I wanted to hurt him for always making me do things...So I hit him." He managed to choke out, clinging to Josh. "It was me in the mirror. Oh my god, it was me, Josh..." He hugged onto him tightly.

"Oh man, Ty..." Josh exhaled and embraced him. "You know that was a bad idea. You know he's in your head. Remember what Dr. Crowe told you? You have to tune him out..."

"I stopped taking my medication." Tyler said suddenly, earning a confused glare from the other boy.

"Why? You said it was helping you...You said it was keeping him quiet."

"Blurry was trying to make me take too many." He chewed on his bottom lip nervously. "He wanted me to overdose. So I threw them away."

Josh just sighed. He was worried beyond belief for Tyler. He stayed quiet for several moments before letting go of the hug. "You need to go back to the psychiatrist." He stated.

"No..." Tyler whispered. "Not today. Not ever. It's scary, Josh!"

"I  _ know _ , Tyler! But you can't live like this... _ I  _ can't live like this! I haven't slept since the first time you woke me up with cuts and bruises all over you! I can't even let you drive because I'm afraid you'll pull the steering wheel and kill us both! I can't take you to places near bridges because I'm afraid you'll jump off without warning!" He took a breath, trying not to choke up. "I have to keep you attached to my hip in this little bubble because I  _ can't  _ lose you, Tyler! Shut the  _ fuck  _ up and get in the car!" Josh bellowed at the smaller boy, whose eyes were wide like a deer's in headlights. Josh tightly grabbed Tyler's thin arm and began dragging him towards the door, pulling out his cellphone. He called the doctor. "Give me Dr. Crowe's office. It's an emergency."

###  **-**

"He's doing it again. He won't take his meds." Josh told the doctor, in her office with Tyler. He looked over at his friend, who was mouthing things to himself. He knew he was talking to Blurryface.

"Is it coming around more often, Tyler?" The doctor's sudden use of his name made him look up, startled.

" _ He  _ is, yes." He always made it known that to him, Blurryface was a being, not an 'it'. Dr. Crowe fringed her brow.

"Right. What has he been saying to you?"

Tyler cringed, looking uncomfortable. "I don't want to talk about it in front of Josh." He said simply, diverting his eyes down.

Josh respectfully stood up. "I'll go get us some lunch. Burrito for you, Ty?" He asked softly, starting out the door. Tyler only responded with a quick nod. Josh left without another thought.

"Tell me about Blurryface." Dr. Crowe said, leaning on her hand. The shadow hands that wrapped around his throat kept him from speaking. They choked him, Blurry didn't want him to talk. Dr. Crowe sighed and looked down at her clipboard. "I think we're going to have to get you new medication."  _ Oh no. Blurry was angry about that. Don't let him slip through, don't let him...  _ "It should make things better for you. If not entirely, it will make the voices ease." She hummed, writing off a prescription. "Blurryface should stop bothering you. Here you g-"

" **Bitch, I hope the fuck you do!** " A deep voice yelled from Tyler's body, snatching away the doctor's coffee mug that was on the table.  _ Tyler was out of his body.  _ It was Blurry now. He splashed coffee onto her, then smacked the mug straight across her face with a shattering noise radiating from the shards on the floor. She was thrown to the ground with a thud, trying to regain her senses. The entity that controlled Tyler then flipped her desk over onto the helpless doctor. He then proceeded to kick her into the corner, still holding the handle of the now shattered cup. This would have gone on for quite some time if Blurryface hadn't receded back into the dark corners of Tyler's mind when the door slammed open. Registering what he was seeing, he slowly turned to see a petrified Josh, holding a burrito in one hand, mouth gaping open. Tyler then looked down at the bloodied mug in his grasp.

"Josh...It's not....it's not what it looks like..."

" _ Security! Help!"  _ The doctor screamed loudly, lifting herself up and covering her face while scrambling out, tripping over her own feet. Less than thirty seconds later, rather muscle clad men ran in to restrain Tyler, and even if he were to struggle, his small frame wouldn't allow him to do so. They dragged him out by his arms, which hurt a lot with the slashes that laid across them.

"No!  _ No!  _ Josh, it was Blurry! Not me!  _ H-Help!  _ Oh god, help!" He managed to shriek, tears welling into his eyes. " _ Joooosh!"  _ Was his final attempt before he was fully out of the room, and shoved into a straight jacket. He was  _ terrified.  _ What could he possibly do now? They weren't going to let him go home, that was for sure. But he knew Josh would get him out of this somehow.

-

The mental hospital was cold. So, so cold.

The jacket was tight. So, so tight.

"Where's Josh?" He would ask, every time a nurse or doctor came in. They would shush him and force him to eat.

" _ Where's Josh?"  _ He would get angrier. He'd yell at them, even.

"Where's my Jishwa?" He'd mutter to himself.

Kicking, screaming, biting.

Now he had to wear a muzzle.

The days went by in blurs. Blurryface would whisper to him, tell him Josh was dead. Tell him to escape, tell him that  _ he killed Josh.  _ But that wasn't possible, was it? He'd know, wouldn't he?

"Mr. Joseph, you have a visitor." Voice stoic, feminine. It was a nurse. He didn't bother to move or speak, just lying there.

"Hey, Tyler." Soft, masculine. Tense.  _ It was Josh.  _ He looked up at Josh, who towered over him 

in his sitting position.

"You're here! Oh my god, Josh..." He wanted to cry. "I've been asking them to call you, begging them to!" Hands wrapped around his throat. Not the normal black hands,  _ Josh's hands.  _ He sputtered in surprise, unable to do anything at all. His arms were restrained. "J-osh!" He choked, trying to squirm away. "J-shhhh..." He kicked, whimpering. He wouldn't let go.  _ Blackness. _

His eyes fluttered open, panic coursing through him. No one was there, he wasn't restrained. He then realized it was a dream. He was still in the mental hospital, however. But now he had a clear mind. The panic and fogginess and  _ blurriness  _ was gone. He pressed the 'call nurse' button, and immediately, someone was at his aid. "Can I please call Josh Dun? I need to talk to him."

The nurse simply nodded and gave him a phone.  _ She wasn't afraid of him, Tyler had complied to everything and never had a fit.  _ He dialed the number that was etched into his mind.

The phone rang, and rang.

" _ I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message."  _ Was the answering machine recording. Followed by it was a beep.

"Josh, it's me." His voice was shaky. "I'm scared, I need you..." He wasn't sure what he was trying to say, and simply hung up after that.

|-/

" _ I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message."   _ "You aren't answering, so you're probably busy. But the doctor says I can have visitors, and I really want to see you."

_ "I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message."   _ "I'm really sorry about what happened, Josh. I miss you. Please call me."

_ "I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message."  _  "I just want to hear your voice. Please."

" _ I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message." _  "My parents visited today. You didn't come."

" _ I'm Josh Dun and I approve this message." _  "I'm sorry, Josh! I'm sorry!"

He left message after message. Until one day, months later.

_ "We're sorry. The number you have reached is no longer in service." _

Tyler had found comfort in just hearing the pre-recorded message of Josh's voice. Now it was replaced by a robot, telling him that Josh's phone had been disconnected. It filled him with despair, it drove him to tears. Had he done this on purpose? Why would he  _ never answer?  _

Had he changed his phone number because of Tyler?

Crying, screaming, kicking, biting. 

Tight straightjacket. 

Pleading, tears, hurt, blood, Blurryface. 

More pills. 

The doctors dreaded coming into his room. They had to force-feed him, but he'd just throw it up. IVs were the only way to get him some kind of sustenance. They had to inject him since he refused to take his meds by mouth. 

"I need Josh!" He'd cry. No more, however. Mere months had passed, he got over his little tantrum. He was freed from his bindings, he would eat now. 

He was sitting in the waiting area, he was going to be released. He hadn't seen Blurryface in ages. He picked up a magazine to read. 

His heart stopped. 

On the cover was a man with sporting a wide smile that made his eyes crinkle up. He had cotton-candy pink hair topped by a backwards SnapBack. He was standing with a few other guys. 

_ House of Heroes reunited. _

Tyler tried to not let it bother him.  _ All day.  _ But his attempts at finding a distraction were to no avail.

He should be happy. Blurryface was gone, he got to see his friends and family, he got to hold his precious ukulele...

But Josh wasn't there.

He was all over the news, standing proudly with  _ his band.  _ He was in newspapers and magazines and new hit songs on the radio. House of Heroes was better than it ever was with Josh back in the band.

Tyler was positively envious. How could Josh ditch him so easily? How could he do this?

Of course, the only logical thing to do would be to go to one of his shows.

 


End file.
